Device for releasing persons caught by elevators.



M. P. SILVA & E. J. SHALLOW. DEVICE FOR RELEASING PERSONS CAUGHT BYELEVATORS.

APPLICATION FILED DEC. 26, 1912. 1,062,667.

Patented May 27, 1913. a 4 J5! l a 21 2&5 a 13 was flu

Wl'lnfisses: Inventor.

- MflzaelIfSiwaJ, l'dward/lfifiallow UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

MICHAEL E. SILVA AND EDWARD J. SHALLOW, OF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS.

DEVICE FOR RELEASING PERSONS CAUGHT BY ELEVATORS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

' Patented May 2'7, 1913.

Application filed December 26, 1912. Serial No 738,763.

Boston, in the county of'Suifolk and State of Massachusetts, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Devices for ReleasingPersons Caught by Elevators, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to devices for use in connection with elevatoraccidents and particularly accidents in which a person is caught betweenthe car platform and the wall of the elevator well.

Heretofore it has been necessary to improvise devices to force theelevator car sidewise so that the injured person could be released andconsequently such person is confined for an unnecessary length of timegreatly suffering during this period and the pain is increased duringthe releasing operations by the means generally employed.

To obviate this suffering and quickly release the injured party so thathis injuries may be attended at the earliest possible moment is theobject of the present invention. 8

It consists of a nut provided with a series of platform gripping devicesand having a depression in one face in which is normally positioned abearing meinberconnectecl by means of a universal joint to an operatingscrew threaded to said nut.

It consists further in providing said nut with means for ripping thefloor boards from the frame of the elevator platform.

It consists further in certain novel features of construction andarrangement of parts which will be fully understood by reference to thedescription of the drawings and to the claims hereinafter given.

Of the drawings: Figure 1 represents a section of a device embodying thefeatures of the present invent-ion, a portion of the operating screwbeing shown in elevation. Fig. 2 represents a transverse section of thesame, the cutting plane being on line 22 on Fig. 1 of the drawings, andFig. 3 represents a partial transverse section of the same, the cuttingplane being on line 3-3 on Fig. 1.

Similar characters designate like parts throughout the several figuresof the drawings.

In the drawings, 10 represents a nut having threaded thereto anoperating screw 11,

movement of the ball 1! the outer end of which is provided With a head12 having sockets 13 formed therein,

these sockets being adapted to receive a handle or a spanner wrench toturn the screw. The nut 10 on its operating face is provided with adepression 14 in which is normally positioned the bearing member 15provided on its out-er face with a plurality of serrations 16.' ,Thisbearing member 15 has positioned therein a ball 17 provided with a shank18 extending into the inner end of the operating screw 11, said shank 18being in axial alinement with said screw. The shank 18 is provided witha peripheral groove 19' with which cooperates a pin 20 extendingtransversely of the operatin screw 11, and thereby preventing any endrelative to the operating screw 11, but permitting the ball to turnfreely about the axis of the shank 18 independent of said operatingscrew 11. The ball 17 is positioned in the bearing member 15 by means ofthe bushing 21, said bushing being prevented from end movement in saidbearing member 15 by means of the pin 22 coacting with the annulargroove 28 formed in the periphery of said bushing. By means of thisconstruction when the operating screw 11 is rotated, end movement willbe imparted thereto and to the bearing plate 15. It is obvious that thisbearing plate 15 is free to move about the center of the ball 17 at alltimes so that when the device is in use the serrated face 16 of saidbearing plate may engage with any surface at an angle to the axis of thescrew 11. The nut 10 is provided with a downwardly extending flange 24,the outer face of which is provided with one or more transverse teeth orengaging members 25, the end faces of which are undercut as indicated at26. In a similar manner the under face of the main body of the nut isprovided with a plurality of similar engaging teeth 27. In the operationof the device the under face of the nut is intended to be placed uponthe platform of an elevator car while the teeth or engaging members 25bear against the edge of the platform. When pressure is applied by therotation of the operating screw 11 these teeth 27 will be forced intothe edge of the platform, and owing to the undercut faces 26 thereof theteeth 27 will be forced into the upper surface of the platform, therebyproviding a means for securing a firm hold upon the car during theoperation of the device. lVhen in use the depending flange 24 isinserted between the edge of the car and the wall of the elevator well,and the operating screw is then rotated so that the serrated face 16 ofthe bearing member 15 will impinge firmly on the wall of said well.Continued rotation of the screw 11 will force the car platform away fromthe wall thereby in creasing the space between the platform edge andsaid wall, thus relieving the pressure against any person who has beenaccidentally caught by the elevator car so that he may be removed andhis injuries attended to.

In the operation of the device it is intended that two of these deviceswould be used, one on either side of an injured person. By the use ofsuch a device the action upon the car in forcing it away from the wallis gradual and the injured person does not suffer by means of itsoperation, as is true with the usual. lll'lPI'OVlSGtl devices now inuse. The present device is intended for use mainly with fire departmentswho are generally called upon in the case of such elevator accidents.Heretofore, in the case of accidents of this nature, it has been necessary to provide wedges to place between the car platform and the wall ofthe elevator well and hammer them down by repeated blows until thenecessary space between the car and the wall is secured so that the injured person may be removed. Each blow upon one of these wedges causesthe injured party increased pain, which is entirely obviated by the useof the present device.

It is obvious that owing to the freedom of the bearing plate 15 to moveabout the center of the ball 17 the device will operate even when thecar platform is inclined to the elevator wall. In some cases it isimpossible owing to the nature of the elevator well and the size of thecar to force the car to one side sufficiently to gain enough space toremove the injured person. In such cases it is necessary to tear theboards from the car platform and in some cases destroy the frameworkitself. To provide for such a condition the lower end of the dependingflange 24 has formed thereon a wedge-shaped member 28, the thin edge ofwhich may be inserted beneath the boards of the car platform so that asthe screw 11 is rotated they will be detached from the car platform andremoved. Should it be necessary to break the framework itself of the carin order to remove the injured person it is obvious that with thedepending flange 24 placed against one of the side frames the necessarypressure may be brought to bear thereupon by the rotation of the screw11 to break said frame. Such elevator accidents as are herein describedare of frequent occurrenceand often times the person is jammed betweenthe car and the wall so firmly that it is impossible to remove him formany hours with the improvised means heretofore used, and as aconsequence the person not only is subjected to intense and unnecessarysuffering during this prolonged period, but in many cases his life is atstake owing to the inability to give his injuries immediate attention.It is intended that every fire company should be provided with a set ofthese devices for use in case of accidents of this nature, and it isquite obvious that with their use the in jured person may be quicklyremoved without subjecting him to unnecessary pain.

It is believed that the operation and many advantages of this devicewill be fully apparent without further description.

Having thus described our invention, we claim:

1. In a device of the class described, the combination of a nut providedwith a depending flange; a screw threaded thereto; and a face platesecured to the end of said screw and in which said screw is free toturn, said face plate being normally positioned within a depression insaid nut.

2. In a device of the class described, the combination of a nut providedwith a depending flange; a screw threaded thereto having a ball end; anda face plate fitted to said ball and within which said ball is free toturn, said face plate being normally positioned in a depression in saidnut having a wall concentric with said ball member.

Signed by us at 4 Post ()fiice Sq., Boston, Mass, this 21st day ofDecember, 1912.

MICHAEL F. SILVA. EDIVARD J. SHALLOIV. Witnesses IVALTER E. LOMBARD,NATHAN C. LOMBARD.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. C. r

